


Mistaken Identity

by ReidFan



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-11
Updated: 2016-03-14
Packaged: 2018-05-19 19:15:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 19,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5978136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReidFan/pseuds/ReidFan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An outing to the park turns into a case for the BAU when one of their own is the apparent target of a shooter bent on revenge</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> this story was 'written-to-order' for a friend of mine. She is Melissa (name's been changed to protect the guilty) I'm not usually a writer of 'original character' cause too often they're just Mary Sues. But this one isn't really an original character, it's an actual person :) so sue me..the story is actually complete, it's just still at the editor and I will post the rest when I get it back from her.  
> Thanks for reading, and for all the positive feedback so far.

“Henry! Henry please wait for us,” Spencer Reid called out to his seven-year-old godson who was hurrying through the parking lot towards the playground. Reid checked to make sure Henry’s younger brother was secure in the baby carrier he was wearing, held the child’s diaper bag tightly in one hand, then broke into a light run to catch up. Thirty feet later, he was taking the older child’s hand, and reminding him gently not to bolt again.

Baby Michael bounced contentedly against Uncle Spencer’s chest, his little fingers clutched Reid’s purple hoodie and Reid laughed as he realised the baby had been sucking on a handful of the fleece garment. 

“Don’t think your mommy would appreciate me letting you consume this,” he told the baby, pulling the sweater from Michael’s mouth.

They reached the playground and Henry ran gleefully to the jungle gym, climbing into it and instantly making a new friend. Reid rummaged through a pocket in the diaper bag until he found the baby’s pacifier, secured in a Ziploc bag. Once again, he disengaged his sweater from Michael’s mouth and fingers and offered him the pacifier. Michael cooed happily as he wiggled, pacifier now firmly in place. Reid set the diaper bag down on the ground next to the jungle gym.

He watched as Henry played with his new friend, a little girl with big brown eyes and dark curly hair. She looked to be about three, Reid thought, and wondered for a moment where her parent or caregiver was. He babbled back and forth with Michael, playing with the baby’s fingers as he surveyed the playground. There were four other children, Reid noted: a blond boy around six; a blond girl approximately four who resembled him—siblings Reid surmised; and two other dark haired girls who looked to be about eight and ten years old. The siblings were playing in the sandbox with an assortment of tractors and trucks. The older girls were swinging on the swings. Two backpack-wearing women -- one blond and about twenty-five, he decided and one dark-haired around thirty-- were standing and chatting, next to the sandbox about fifteen feet away from the jungle gym. In the five seconds it took for Reid to profile the scene, the mother of Henry’s new friend came running up, calling out her child’s name and admonishing her in much the same fashion Reid had just done with Henry. The little girl, Anna, was allowed to return to the climbing apparatus and as her mother turned, she bumped into Reid, losing her balance and falling down. Immediately, Reid bent down to help her up.

“I’m so sorry,” she apologized, brushing the sand out of her clothes, “I didn’t see you.”

Spencer smiled, told her it was okay and commented on how well Henry and Anna appeared to be getting along. She offered her hand and introduced herself, ”I’m Melissa.”

“Spencer,” he replied, awkwardly extricating his right hand from Michael’s grip so he could shake the woman’s hand, despite the fact that he didn’t normally do so with strangers. 

“What’s the baby’s name?” she asked.

“Michael.” Reid pulled the top of the carrier aside a little to afford Melissa the opportunity to see him. She smiled and cooed at him and was delighted to get a response as his little hand reached out to take her finger.

Reid looked up and saw a dark red Ford SUV circle around the parking lot in which only two other vehicles—a small compact and a Jeep—were parked.

Henry and Anna were playing a spirited game of tag, racing along the small playhouse interior of the jungle gym and sliding down the little slide, chasing each other and climbing up the ladder back into the playhouse, laughing all the while. Reid watched them while also keeping an eye on their surroundings. Anna’s mother watched Reid. She smiled at the ease with which the young man interacted with both the baby and the older child as they chatted about children in general. He kept looking around, she noticed, but not in a distracted way.

“It’s too early for your bottle, Michael. Sorry. We have to let Henry burn off some energy and then we’ll go back home for your lunch, okay?” he told the baby after Michael had spit out his pacifier for about the fifth time. Reid rummaged through the diaper bag again and found another Ziploc bag. He took out an arrowroot biscuit and offered it to Michael who eagerly snatched it from his fingers and began gnawing at it.

“Teething?” Melissa asked, addressing the question to both Spencer and Michael. 

“Yeah, the first molars I think,” Spencer replied. “Ouch, if I recall correctly from Henry’s experience.”

Anna approached, and seeing Michael with a cookie, asked Reid if she could have one too. While Melissa immediately began to admonish Anna for asking, Spencer interjected saying it was fine, and that she could indeed have one too if it was okay with Melissa.

“Plleeeeasssse Mama?” Anna begged and her mother relented.

Henry came down the slide and joined them. Reid knelt down to their level, and quickly gave each child a cookie. 

“JJ is going to kill me,” he made a face as he spoke. “Filling them with cookies. She’ll never let me out with them again,” he lamented, as he rose back to his full height.

“Aw, I think you’re doing a great job with your sons,” Melissa said sympathetically.

The SUV made another circuit, slowing behind the Jeep. Reid noted there were two people in the vehicle, both wore sunglasses and had dark hair. They appeared to be looking for something. Or someone, he thought.

“I’m sorry. Um, they’re not my sons, they’re my godsons actually,” he told her. As the SUV came around again, Reid spoke.

“BT1537,” he said aloud. Melissa, who had been asking him how old Michael was, realised his attention had shifted to the vehicle in the parking lot. 

“What?” she asked.

“BT15--,” he started to repeat and his eyes suddenly widened. He grabbed her and threw her to the ground, at the same time shouting out to the others in the playground,

“Get down! Everybody get down!” In the same instant, Henry and Anna came down the little slide and landed almost next to Melissa and Spencer. He grabbed the children and forced them down into the sand next to Melissa, and moved to shield them with his own body, taking care to cover Michael. 

Shots rang out. Melissa counted six, but as soon as the first one sounded, chaos ensued. The other two women and four children started screaming but quickly followed Reid’s example, hitting the ground. The SUV’s tires squealed as the vehicle fled the parking lot and drove off in an easterly direction.

Anna was crying and instinctively, Melissa meant to go to her and found she couldn’t move. Spencer was lying across her back face down in the sand. She reached out and found Anna’s hand and held it, and her daughter began to calm down. Melissa heard Michael’s muffled crying and then she heard Henry’s piercing scream. Spencer was eerily silent and she soon discovered why.

“Uncle Spence! Uncle Spence!” Henry was distraught and terrified. Melissa managed to crawl out from underneath Spencer and was horrified to find that there was blood, a lot of it, streaming from his head and along his back. 

She ripped her own sweater off and pressed it against the wound on the back of his head, turning his head a little so the sand could be moved from his mouth and nose. The other two women in the park, along with their four frightened but uninjured children, came running to help. Linda, the brunette woman directed her daughters, Nikki and Vikki, to comfort Anna while she gathered Henry in her arms, speaking soothingly to him. 

“Call 9-1-1,” Melissa commanded, as she brushed sand away from Spencer’s face and checked to see if he was breathing. Finding that to be the case, she turned his head just enough to keep his airway clear of the sand.

“I don’t have a—“ the blond woman began. 

Melissa motioned with her chin to a spot just behind her on the ground where Spencer had first shoved her, “In my purse!”

“Anna, honey, can you and the girls help Mommy help Spencer?”

Anna nodded her head. The three girls all awaited Melissa’s instructions. 

“I need one of you to press down on the sweater here, to stop the bleeding from his head. Can you do that?” Nikki, the older girl bravely took the position and did as directed. Melissa quickly unclasped the baby carrier; the clips over Spencer’s shoulders were easily undone.

“Ok, I’m going to move him just a bit here, and I need you two to get Michael out.”

Behind her, she could still hear Henry’s plaintive cry. It broke her heart but she couldn’t let that distract her. Carefully, she pushed Spencer up out of the sand, just enough so that Anna and Vikki could tug Michael free of the baby carrier. He’d stopped crying and this worried Melissa. 

“Ambulance and police are on the way,” Stephanie, the blond woman, told them, putting the cell phone back in Melissa’s purse. Her two children stood beside her, sniffling but otherwise still; well behaved considering the circumstances.

Relief of sorts spread through Melissa when she heard Michael resume crying as the girls liberated him from the carrier. Stephanie took charge of baby Michael, using bottles of water from their backpack to wash the sand off his face and out of his mouth and nose. She handed a bottle of water to Melissa, who used some of it to clear the sand from Spencer’s face. 

“The baby’s okay, just a little sandy. Unhurt though,” said Stephanie.

Henry calmed down a little when he saw his younger brother was all right, but his uncle’s condition still scared him.

“Uncle Spence?” he whispered between sniffles, looking up to the brunette holding him.

“He’s gonna be all right, honey,” she told him, even if she didn’t know the truth herself. “The paramedics are on the way.”

Anna held her sweater out to her mother. “Do you need mine for there?” she asked, indicating the wound on Reid’s back.

“Oh, sweetheart,” Melissa was moved to tears. Her daughter’s favourite Dora the Explorer sweater was about to become a bloody compress and the sacrifice wasn’t lost on anyone. Anna put her hand on top of her mother’s and moved the sweater to the hole in Spencer Reid’s back. They held it in place together and waited for the ambulance.


	2. Chapter 2

“There was a shooting in a park in DC about an hour ago,” Hotch told them as the BAU members assembled at their conference room round table. Rossi and Morgan exchanged a look. Garcia, Jareau and Lewis took their seats; Reid’s remained unoccupied.

“Where’s Spence?” JJ asked, taking her cellphone out of her pocket.

Hotch put his hand out and touched hers, indicating that she not use it.

“Obviously, you haven’t been contacted. I’m sorry, JJ. First, the boys are okay, they’re down at the precinct and I’m gonna send you there to get them in just a minute—“

A gasp elicited from Agent Jareau’s mouth and she moved to stand abruptly. “Oh my God, my boys!”

“Again, they’re okay, Will is there.” Hotch assured her, patting her shoulder and holding her in place in her seat. Another realisation occurred to her. 

“Spence!”

“That’s why we are getting involved. According to the preliminary report I have here,” he waved a paper file around, “Reid was the only one shot. He ensured everyone else hit the ground and shielded baby Michael with his own body, JJ. He’s still in surgery at the moment, and right now, that’s all the information I have on Reid. I’ve already muzzled the press about this, the witnesses are gathered at the police station to give their statements and will be briefed to keep it quiet as well.”

The unit members reacted angrily. JJ gathered her things together, “I have to get to my boys.” Hotch nodded sympathetically. 

“Of course you do,” he agreed. “I’ll keep you updated.” As she rose to leave, her cellphone went off.

“Will!” she listened for a moment and replied, “I’m on my way.” She clicked the phone shut and turned to Hotch, “Please let me know when you hear anything about Spence.”

Garcia watched as JJ left the room and tapped a few keys on her laptop.

“Who shoots up a park with kids playing?” Morgan exclaimed, angrily slamming his fist on the table.

“Was Reid the target?” Rossi wanted to know.

“That’s part of what we’re going to determine,” Hotch began. “Lewis, I want you and Morgan to go to the crime scene. Dave, the police department. Find out what they know. Garcia?”

“Yes, boss?”

“Can you work from the hospital?”

She nodded affirmatively, and immediately rose to pack up what she’d need and head over to the hospital. 

“The instant I hear anything about Boy Genius, I will let you know, My Liege.”

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JJ burst through the front door of the police station, intent on finding her family members and ran headlong into the very man she’d come looking for.

“Will!” she wrapped her arms around her husband and took comfort in his powerful hug. They spoke in low undertones for a moment before Will disengaged the hug and led her to the office where her two sons awaited her. He opened the door very quietly so as not to disturb the proceedings therein.

Henry sat with his back to the door, playing a board game with three young girls. Two women sat in chairs nearby, speaking with what JJ understood were investigating officers. Michael was asleep, rocking gently in the arms of the older of the two women.

“My wife, Jennifer-JJ,” Will introduced, “And this is Linda O’Connor, her daughters Vikki and Nikki. And Melissa Martin, and her daughter Anna. Melissa’s the one who gave initial first aid to Spencer.”

“MOMMY!” Henry realised JJ had arrived and rushed into his waiting mother’s arms, interrupting her returning handshakes and greetings with the other women.

“Henry,” she said gently, gathering him up in a big hug. The two squeezed each other for a long time, JJ repeatedly whispered “I love you so much” before Henry finally disentangled from her arms to ask,

“How’s Uncle Spence?”

“Oh, honey, I just don’t know yet. Go play, I’ll let you know as soon as we hear, I promise.”

She and Will rejoined the adults; JJ took Michael from Linda and snuggled her baby close. They all listened as Linda related what she remembered, which wasn’t much at all, mostly just about how Dr. Reid had warned everyone and how Melissa had taken charge of first aid for him after the shots had been fired. A few minutes later, Linda and her daughters were dismissed and allowed to leave.

A policewoman entered the room with a tray of cold drinks for the children and coffee for the adults. Melissa had already given her statement and was just collecting herself.

“So you are JJ?” Melissa asked, struggling to hold back tears.

“Yes, I am. Oh dear,” she answered, growing concerned over the younger woman’s burgeoning distress. “You’ve been through a lot today.” She gave Melissa a comforting pat on the arm.

“He said you were going to kill him,” Melissa began.

“Never!” JJ replied. “Why’d he say that?”

A small smile formed on Melissa’s face as she recalled the conversation. “He was giving the kids cookies, he thought you’d never let him take them out again.”

“Oh that’s too funny. Henry would never allow that. He loves his Uncle Spence. But you’re right. I am gonna hafta take those cookies out of the diaper bag next time the boys are going out with Uncle Spence.” 

Melissa started to cry. She wiped at her eyes quickly, not wanting to upset Anna who, fortunately, was still engrossed in her game with Henry. 

“I’m sorry. I’m just invested now, you know. I want to go back to the hospital and see how he’s doing,” Melissa sniffled.

JJ nodded sympathetically. “He’s gonna be okay.” She said, willing it to be true.

She brought Michael’s face up to her own and gave the sleeping baby a kiss on the forehead. Her brow furrowed as she thought, and she turned to Will, handing him their younger son.

“Will. Can you take the boys home for me? I—I really need to get to the hospital and see how Spence is.”

He took the baby from her and nodded understandingly. Spencer Reid was his wife’s best friend in the world and he knew how important it was for her to be there for him. Now that she knew her sons were safe, Reid would be her priority.

“Melissa?” JJ prompted gently. Melissa lifted her eyes to meet JJ’s.

“Do you think Anna would be willing to go home with Will and Henry and Michael? They could have a camp out in the living room. Will’s really good with kids too,” JJ offered. “I’m going to go to the hospital, I thought maybe you’d like to come with me.”


	3. Chapter 3

Morgan and Lewis circled the taped off section of the park. The Forensics people were still gathering evidence and informed the BAU members about any of their findings. Morgan clicked on his cell and called Rossi to confirm the report of number of gunshots. While Morgan made his call, Lewis spoke to the lead Forensics officer. She knelt down next to this investigator who was swabbing a bloody spot on the wooden rail ties that formed a border around the sandy base of the playground. He surmised that Reid had fallen here, and hit his head on the tie when he fell. She nodded in agreement with what he said and took out her cell to take a few pictures. He pointed to the steel supports that held up the little playhouse portion of the jungle gym and Lewis took another picture. Over in the parking lot, another officer was taking castings of tire prints. 

His call concluded, Morgan rejoined Lewis and they shared thoughts and theories before thanking the Forensics team and returning to their vehicle.

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Penelope Garcia sat in the Emergency Room waiting area, her computer opened up on her lap and a half-empty coffee cup sitting on a small table beside her. Other people with loved ones being attended to occupied several seats in the area; a couple holding hands sat directly across from her. In one corner, a young woman sat watching her young child play with the hospital provided Lego table. As cell phone usage was discouraged in the waiting room, Garcia had muted the volume on her laptop and used the text message function to communicate with Hotchner.

Still no news on Reid she typed. Currently sitting in waiting room worrying my head off.

I’m sure he has the best possible care, came the reply. Please keep head. We need you.

Copy that Leader. Am currently going through records to see if anyone has any reason to wanna hurt Boy Genius. Case related or otherwise.

Good work. Keep me posted.

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“Thank you for taking me with you, JJ. I really appreciate this.” 

Melissa had turned Anna over to Will, explaining to the little girl she was going on a special trip to Henry’s house and would have fun with her friend there. Anna took it all in stride, looking forward to seeing Henry’s fort. Will had promised her that she would be able to help give Michael his bottle and Anna was ecstatic at this prospect.

“I know. We’re all worried about Spence. He’s been through this kind of thing before—“

“What?” Melissa was aghast. “They were calling him Doctor—Why would a doctor be getting shot at?“

“Oh. That.” JJ started. “He’s got a PhD. Three of them actually. But he’s not a medical doctor, Melissa. Although he could probably pull that off too.” She stopped at a red light and glanced over at Melissa. “You don’t know, do you?”

The blank look on Melissa’s face gave JJ her answer.

“He’s--actually we both are--FBI agents. With the BAU, that’s the Behavioral Analysis Unit.”

“That explains why he was so observant about everything going on around us!” Melissa realised. “That means you are really observant too.”

JJ smiled. She was observing something else right now.

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Rossi called. Six bullets confirmed. Morgan says five recovered at site. Just one still in Reid. Ballistics to confirm match pending.

“Ick,” Garcia muttered under her breath as she read the text. She sent Hotch a preliminary list of possible suspects and returned to her search, looking up when she heard the familiar voice of Jennifer Jareau.

“JJ!” Garcia set her laptop aside and jumped up to hug the new arrival. “He saved your boys. All those people.” And Garcia burst into tears, overwhelmed by the emotions roiling within her.

JJ hugged her back, then stepped back and introduced Melissa.

“P, this is Melissa, the one that probably saved Spence’s life.” 

Garcia swiveled to hug Melissa, “You are my hero. You saved our 187.”

“Is that some sort of agent designation he has?” Melissa asked, returning the hug and deciding at once that she really liked this sweet and bubbly girl.

“Actually, the boy, hmmm, the man is a genius. 187 is his IQ. Uber smart we’re talking here. Oh. And my name is Penelope. I’m the technical analyst for the team. I make magic with my computer for the rest of them to do their magic. And believe me, they are magicians.”

They sat down together and Garcia asked Melissa to tell them about her meeting Spencer. She explained about meeting over the children at the park and how impressed she’d been with how well he dealt with the boys, who, as it turned out, weren’t even his own sons. Melissa gushed further over Spencer for a moment. Garcia and JJ exchanged a look and a smile when Melissa asked, “Do you two believe in love at first sight?”

Before either could reply, a grim looking surgeon in scrubs, with a mask pulled down around his chin came through the door from the OR ward. He saw the FBI ID on Garcia and approached them.

He bent his head down and spoke quietly, “Are any of you family to Dr. Spencer Reid?”

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David Rossi sat down in Aaron Hotchner’s office and put the file Morgan had given him on the desk in front of the chief.

“From what I understand, Aaron, all six shots were fired at that little playhouse the kids were playing in. Reid was hit by one, grazed by another one that was retrieved from the ground next to where he fell. The other four bullets were located, all in and around that playhouse.”

Hotchner flipped through the file as Rossi continued,

“Forensics said the five they have were all fired from the same gun but no shell casings were recovered. Gunman must’ve used some sort of catcher. Or fired from in the vehicle,” he paused and read from the report, “’A big dark car.’” He rolled his eyes. “That’s helpful.”

Both men considered this information. Hotchner checked his cellphone when it vibrated. Garcia had sent him a list of those with possible motive to want to take revenge on Reid, along with their current whereabouts.

He showed the list to Rossi and they both had thoughts on it.

“Most of those people can immediately be eliminated. They’re incarcerated. Or in mental health institutions,” Hotch noted.

“And most of the others wouldn’t be out for Reid necessarily. They’d have it in for all of us,” Rossi said. “Aaron, I don’t think Reid was the target. Think about it. This jagoff is shooting up a park. If he wants Reid, he’d have lots of other opportunities. Less public. Less fallout. Fewer witnesses. This jagoff was shooting at the kids. Henry. And Michael. I think this guy is after JJ. Or possibly Will.”

Hotchner picked up his cellphone again, not entirely convinced that Reid wasn’t targeted.

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Will sat in the big recliner in the LaMontagne living room and helped Anna climb up into his lap. Once he had her positioned, he shifted Michael in front so that he could support the baby’s head. He gave the bottle to Anna and showed her how to hold it so the milk flowed easily as Michael sucked on it. 

Anna was enthralled by the process and called out to Henry “Look! I’m feeding the baby!”

Henry had given Michael a bottle on many occasions and was past the stage where he’d be jealous of his little brother. He gave Anna a wave from his present location under a pile of couch cushions and said “I’ll have our fort ready in a coupla minutes.” 

The phone rang and Henry ran to retrieve it from its cradle. “Hello?”

He hurried to Will and gave the handset to his father.

“Agent Hotchner. Hello.” He listened intently for a few minutes and assured Hotchner he’d look after things on his end. They would be prepared to go into protective custody in the morning.

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He looked at the three women before him and let out a tired breath. All three had risen anxiously when he’d approached them. Garcia couldn’t stand the suspense any longer. Not answering his question, she asked one of her own.

“How’s Spencer?”

He looked from one to the next to the other and put his hand out onto Garcia’s shoulder.

“He lost a lot of blood. Bullet tore into his back, between the shoulder blade and the deltoid muscle. A second bullet grazed the left side of his head. And he sustained a concussion when he fell, banged it on the ground, there are multiple abrasions on his temple, but barring any other complications, I anticipate a full recovery. He’s a lucky man,” the doctor paused for emphasis then broke into a smile, ‘three women waiting for him.”

Three huge sighs of relief sounded. The doctor continued, “He’s in Recovery. I’ll let you see him, one at a time, please, just to prove to you he’s all right. And I guess I better have them contact that agent—“

“Oh, I will do that, Doctor. Agent Hotchner is expecting an update,” Garcia exclaimed.

“Follow me,” the doctor directed, taking them back through the door and down the hallway to the Recovery Room where Spencer Reid lay unconscious in a bed.

Each of them looked in on him in turn. He was stirring slightly as the effects of anesthesia started to wear off. Garcia and JJ stepped back, observing Melissa as she watched over him for a long moment.

Garcia whispered to JJ, “I do. I believe.” JJ nodded in agreement.


	4. Chapter 4

“Reid’s out of surgery and in Recovery. Prognosis is a full recovery,” Hotch informed the assembly of BAU members convened around the conference room table. Lewis, Morgan and Rossi all heaved sighs of relief. 

“And we’ll be taking JJ’s family into protective custody. Forensics indicated that the target or targets of the gunman were probably JJ’s children. Not Reid. JJ’s at the hospital right now, I’ll have agents pick her up and take her into Protective. There are units at the LaMontagne home for the night. The kids are probably in bed by now.”

Hotch paced around the table and continued,

“We’ve had a long day. I want everyone to go home and get a good night’s sleep. Dave will lead you tomorrow while we figure out who’s doing this. I’ll be in a little later; I’m going to talk to Reid. If he’s recovered enough, he’ll remember everything that happened in that park today.”

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On a deserted country lane outside the city, a dark sedan approached a dark red SUV parked at the side of the road in the oncoming direction. It came to a stop when the drivers’ windows were opposite each other. The SUV driver rolled down his window. The sedan door opened and the driver exited the vehicle.   
A heavily accented feminine voice angrily grunted something in a foreign language. There was a flash of light and several shots were fired, after which she returned to the sedan and sped away.

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JJ bent over to hug him gently and spoke in low tones so she wouldn’t wake Melissa who had finally fallen asleep in a chair beside Reid’s hospital bed.

“And I am going to have to take those cookies out of Michael’s bag next time I let you take the kids,” she teased. 

Reid was sitting up in his bed taking it all in stride. JJ had apprised him of Melissa’s life saving heroics, and how little Anna had given up her beloved sweater for the cause.

He grinned and told her, “Yeah, we hit it off right away.”

JJ tilted her head in an unspoken question. Spencer explained, “Literally. She crashed into me and fell for me immediately. I think I could really like this lady.”

She giggled and became solemn again almost immediately. Tears formed in her eyes as she hugged him again, “Honestly, Spence. I just can’t thank you enough for what you did for Henry and Michael yesterday. There are no words.” 

His good arm went up around her back to return her hug as best he could. 

“Hotch is putting us in Protective until they can figure out who’s doing this. And he’s on his way over to talk to you. I think the investigating officers will want to interview you too.”

He nodded. “I’m trying to remember everything so I can help the investigation.”

“I should go,” JJ said. Indicating the sleeping Melissa, she told Spencer, “You know, she’s been here all night.”

“So have you,” he guessed. “Go home to my godsons, JJ. Give them each a hug from me. And tell Garcia thank you for the flowers,” he gestured at the huge predominantly purple bouquet sitting on the windowsill by his bed.

She nodded, “Penelope was in here earlier, but you were sleeping and she was working on something for Hotch she had to get back to.” JJ squeezed his (good) shoulder and silently left the room. He sank back down into his bed and fell asleep.

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Rossi and Morgan were in Rossi’s office going through old files. One by one, folders were tossed aside as the two men found reasons to eliminate suspects. Rossi leaned back and let out a deep sigh just as Lewis entered the office. She handed Rossi the folder she was carrying and told them,

“Ballistics worked overtime ‘cause it’s one of our own. The slug they took out of Reid yesterday matched the five recovered at the site. We’re talking about a single weapon here. A Glock.” 

She passed them the photographs she’d taken the previous day. Morgan pored over the graphic of the crime scene, playing out in his head where all the shots had come from. 

“Hey, Lewis. Could they tell what order the shots were fired in? Witnesses say anything about that?”

She flipped through the notes and made a discovery.

“Morgan,” she acknowledged his deduction with a nod. “According to Melissa Martin,” she read from the report “We all hit the ground when Doctor Reid yelled out his warning. I heard the first shot and it made a pinging sound, like when something hits metal,” Lewis paused, remembering her conversation with the investigator, determined, “That would be the bullet hitting the metal support under the playhouse.”

Morgan was standing, playing the scene out in his head. He mimicked shooting the first shot, made the ping sound and paused. “What else did she say?”

“There were three more in quick succession, and then I heard Doctor Reid moan as he was hit,” Lewis read from the file, “And then two more shots.”

“So I shoot at the playhouse, bang. At the kids, bang, bang, bang. And I swivel around a bit. Or if I’m shooting from in the car, it’s moved forward a bit. Then I shoot at Reid. Bang. He goes down. “

“Reid dragged them into the sand just as he got shot,” Lewis reminded, from the notes.

“So Henry’s the first target. And when Reid’s pulled them all down into the sand, he just shoots at everyone.”

“You’re blowing up my theory that the LaMontagne kids are the target, Derek,” Rossi complained half-heartedly.

“Says here Reid was wearing a purple hoodie.” Lewis interjected. “Did he have the hood up over his head? Maybe the shooter thought he was Will all along?”


	5. Chapter 5

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Melissa woke with a start and found her neck and shoulders cramped. Spencer was sleeping, she noted, and quietly she slipped out of his room to walk around and stretch the kinks out of her muscles.

She found Penelope in the waiting room, packing up her laptop and gathering her things. 

“Is Prince Charming still sleeping?” Garcia asked with a knowing smile. Melissa laughed.

“If you’re referring to Doctor Reid, yes. He is still sleeping.”

“Hotch—that’s our boss—is on his way in to see him. He’s got some questions. I’m going back to the office. Can you stay here until—“

Her cellphone vibrated but Garcia heard it anyway and quickly retrieved the device from the depths of her purse. She read the text and instantly put the phone away.

“We’re not supposed to use them. In the hospital. That was JJ. She has Anna with her. I’m supposed to call her. Let’s go back to Reid’s room. We can call her from his patient phone.”

They slipped quietly into Reid’s room and Garcia dialed JJ’s number. She spoke for a few minutes in low tones and then handed the phone to Melissa. 

“JJ. Wants to talk to you. And let you talk to Anna for a minute.”

Garcia waited discreetly at the door for Melissa to conclude the call, and then the two of them left the room and walked straight into Hotchner.

“Sorry, ladies.”

“Hotch! Oh. I’m just on my way back to the office. This is Melissa Martin, Agent Hotchner,” Penelope made the introductions.

“The primary witness, nice to meet you,” Hotchner extended his hand, which Melissa shook immediately.

“And you are Spencer’s boss,” she acknowledged. Behind them, a nurse carrying a tray entered Reid’s room.

“Garcia, when you get back to the office, please check with Morgan and Rossi, they may have a few things they want you to look into,” Hotchner addressed Garcia and then turned his attention to Melissa, “Miss Martin, would you mind waiting here for me to finish with Reid?”

She nodded and told him she’d wait in the ER waiting room for him. He thanked her and entered Reid’s room.

The nurse was just finishing taking his blood pressure and temperature, marking these results on his chart. She eyed Hotch up and down and remarked “Police?”

“FBI.”

“Oh,” her eyes widened. “I need to change the dressing on the patient’s head, but I’ll come back to do that after you’re done with him.” 

Reid had remained quiet during this exchange but as soon as the nurse left, he sat up straight and gave Hotch his full attention.

“How are you feeling?” Hotch asked him.

“I’m good, Hotch. Really. They need to let me out of here.”

“Not so fast I’m afraid. Do you feel up to answering some questions?”

Reid nodded affirmatively.

“What do you remember about the shooting? The suspects? The vehicle? Anything?”

“Shooter was the passenger. Dark haired. Sunglasses. Male. Right handed. Pretty sure he was Middle Eastern. The driver I couldn’t get a look at, Hotch, sorry. The vehicle was a wine red Ford Expedition. DC license plate BT 1537. They came into the parking lot, circled slowly twice and on the third come around, I saw movement on the passenger side. It just seemed out of place in a park full of kids playing.”

Hotch was keying all this into his iPhone. “One more question Reid. Were you wearing the hood of your sweater?”

Reid’s brow furrowed. “I—no. I mean, I had the sweater on, but the laces around the neck are dangerous to the baby so I had that tucked way down inside. I wasn’t wearing the actual hood, just had it bunched up around my neck.”

Hotch nodded. A ringtone indicated he had a text message and he glanced down at his phone.

“DC police just found two men dead in an SUV south of the city on a country road.” He paused and looked up, making eye contact with Reid. “A dark red Ford Expedition.”

He tapped the license number Reid had given him in reply to the text and waited for an answer. “It’s the same one. They’re IDing them now, Garcia’s running the plate for me. And she’ll run the names once they come through, too.”

He read another text, quickly replied to it and then addressed Reid once more. “We’re taking JJ and her family into protective custody until we have this nailed down. Morgan isn’t convinced yet that you weren’t a specific target too, so you’ll be staying in safety as well. We’re moving you up to the VIP room here.”

“Wait. What?” Reid wondered.

“The secure suite they use for dignitaries, the President, foreign ambassadors etc., Reid. The only access in and out will be through one of us. Starting tonight, with me.”

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“I’m sorry, Miss Martin, but Protective Custody is for your own safety. I’ll have a detail bring your daughter over. She’s safe with the LaMontagnes in the meantime.”

Melissa nodded acknowledgement. Hotchner handed her a pad of paper and a pen. “Please write a list of the things you and Anna will need over the next couple of days, and I’ll have a detail go to your apartment and pick them up. Or Garcia can shop for anything else. I will contact your employer and your daughter’s school and/or daycare to apprise them of her absence.”

Melissa gave him the necessary contact information then sat down and set to work writing out the necessary items. Hotchner tapped out a few text messages, then looked up and asked her,

“Do you have a cellphone?”

“Yes. It’s in my bag.”

“Once you’re upstairs, you’ll be allowed to use that in the hospital. There’s a secure server up there for just the use of the Safe Room. I’m going to caution you though, not to reveal your actual location to anyone. If you’ve discovered you’re missing something or need something, please contact either myself or Garcia, and we will get it for you,” he paused to hand her a Post-It note with their two numbers on it. “I hope you find Doctor Reid to be pleasant company.”

Melissa blushed and hoped Hotchner didn’t see the fifty shades of red her face currently sported.

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	6. Chapter 6

Reid thanked Morgan once more for retrieving his messenger bag and his cellphone then Morgan hugged him goodbye before leaving. Spencer spent the next hour or so going through all the files Morgan had brought him, catching up on the case. When he read that Melissa’s daughter had sacrificed her sweater to render his first aid, he stopped and set the files aside for a moment to exchange a flurry of text messages with Garcia. That completed, he picked up a series of older folders and continued his studying. Something was nagging at him as he set one aside. Deciding it was time for a break, he settled for touring his new temporary home.

Taking careful steps, Reid padded around his new room, noting the one-way bullet proof glass in the window, the emergency call buttons in several locations and the walls which seemed to be bomb shelter strong. There was a sofa, coffee table and armchair set up before a television by another window. He saw a rail on the ceiling that held a curtain, which could be drawn around the bed for privacy during examination.

He checked out the adjoining room. Set up as a bedroom for someone else, there were two beds along one wall, a television and a desk and chair by another bulletproof glassed window set in the far wall. It resembled a hotel room, he thought, complete with a small refrigerator, a kettle, a microwave and—this discovery was his favourite—a coffee maker. A small cupboard held a variety of dishes. He opened a door and found a full bathroom, situated between the two rooms. Tour complete, he committed the layout to memory.

His head had stopped throbbing thankfully. He caught his reflection in the bathroom mirror; happy to see that the last bandage change done by the nurse a few hours ago resulted in a much smaller dressing in its place. His hair was still a mess, having been cut back in several places to treat his injuries. Dammit, he thought, I should’ve asked the nurse if it was okay for me to take a shower. Padding back out to his patient room, he saw the same microwave, coffee maker set up the other room had and smiled. Reid wondered which one of the many buttons on the wall would actually bring him his nurse. Instead, he called Hotchner who inquired,

“Can you manage it on your own, with just one arm Reid? I’ll just get your nurse, hang on.”

Within minutes, Reid’s nurse arrived. She helped him with a bath and washed his hair, dressing him in his own pajamas afterward and confining his arm in a sling to limit the amount of movement in his shoulder. He would have no use of his left arm for at least two weeks while the deltoid muscle in his back healed. The prospect of needing help to bathe and dress displeased him. His train of thought was interrupted by the sound of the security swipe card at the door.

Garcia opened the door and ushered in Melissa and Anna. 

“My Spencer!” the little girl squealed and ran towards him, dropping her Mickey Mouse backpack on the floor. He bent down to her level and enveloped her in a one-armed hug when she reached him. Anna reached out with a finger and gently touched the bandage covering his temple. “Owie?” she asked.

“A little bit,” he answered her honestly.

“Anna will kiss it better,” she told him and reached up to do just that. 

Melissa called out, “Anna! Remember to be gentle. Spencer is hurt.”

“He’s loving it,” Garcia laughed. Turning to Melissa, she gestured towards the back bedroom, “Welcome to protective custody. At least you’re not alone like I was.”

Reid extricated himself from Anna’s hug and watched as she bounded into the bedroom to explore her new surroundings. 

“Remember Anna? Time for jammies. It’s almost bedtime,” Melissa told her. She turned and thanked Garcia for all her help then followed her daughter into their room. 

Garcia took the opportunity to hand Reid a shopping bag.

“I hope this one’s okay. Let me know, BoyGenius, if there’s anything else I can get for you.”

He thanked her and took the offered bag, laying it down on his bed. They chatted while they waited for Melissa and Anna to reappear. 

A few minutes later, Anna emerged in Mickey Mouse pajamas and said good night to Garcia and Reid. Garcia gave each of them a hug and said she was going home for the night, but would have her cell on if anyone needed anything.

“I’m gonna put Anna to bed now, so I guess this is good night too,” Melissa addressed Spencer. He bent down again to accept a good night kiss from Anna.

“G’night My Spencer,” Anna waved with one hand as she took Melissa’s hand with her other. Reid hesitated for just a moment then spoke, directing his invitation to Melissa.

“You’re welcome to hang out here for a while if it isn’t time for you to sleep yet.”

She settled Anna into bed then tiptoed out to the other room. Spencer indicated the sofa and invited her to sit down.

“There’s actually a kettle in our room, Spencer. Can I make you some tea?” she offered.

“There’s one over here too,” he indicated the identical setup on a table behind him. “And tea would be really nice, thank you.”

A few minutes later they sat next to each other on the sofa, sipping tea.

“So. Welcome to protective custody,” Reid set his mug down and gestured at the room around them. He sighed nervously and continued in a serious tone. “You saved my life. Thank you.”

She was silent for a long moment. “Spencer,” she finally breathed. Something about the way she said his name set his heart aflutter. She bit her lip and continued, “Spencer. You saved all our lives. Thank you.”

He took a long sip of his tea, looking at her over the rim of the mug. She had long dark hair. His favourite shade of brown, he noted. Her bright eyes sparkled, they shone brighter when she spoke of her daughter and he saw something in her eyes now that he couldn’t quite place despite his customary skill at reading people. When she smiled, her smile reached her eyes. He loved the way her whole face lit up when she spoke about Anna. And now, he realised, the silence was probably making her feel a little uncomfortable.

“Sorry,” he offered. “Sorry about spacing out like that, I was just thinking about—“he paused awkwardly. “Something,” he finished. God, that was lame, Reid, he thought. He picked up his mug, took another long sip and tried again.

“Tell me about yourself. You know I’m an FBI agent. What do you do?”

“I studied natural health in college. I was working at the university clinic part time. I’m also a massage therapist.”

He smiled. “That explains why you knew what to do.”

She nodded. “I have my basic first aid certificate. My CPR rating. When they said you were Doctor Reid, I assumed you were an MD.”

“I have delivered a baby. But that was more because I’d read all about it when JJ was pregnant with Henry.” He sipped more tea and continued, “What kind of books do you like to read?”

The awkwardness and nervousness dissipated and the two of them found they were chatting like old friends about a variety of subjects: favourite books and authors, favourite TV shows (Reid was pleasantly surprised to find out Melissa was a fellow Whovian) favourite Disney character (no surprise that the Mouse came out on top on both accounts). Suddenly it was midnight, the moment marked by the arrival of Reid’s nurse. She clucked her disapproval that he was still up at this hour, shooing him over to his bed so she could take his temperature and blood pressure reading.

“Good night, Spencer. See you in the morning,” Melissa said softly as she stood up to return to her room, heart soaring as she heard him reply in kind.

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	7. Chapter 7

At three in the morning, Spencer sat bolt upright in bed. He fumbled for his glasses on the bedside table, put them on and flipped on a light.

Padding over to the sofa where he’d left his messenger bag, he rifled through the files until he found the one he was looking for. Reid flipped back and forth between a few of the pages, referred to another file and then went back to the first one. He gasped and hunted for his cellphone.

“Reid! It’s three o’clock in the morning!” Hotchner was only semi-serious. He knew Reid wouldn’t be calling him at this hour without good reason. Shaking off the sleep, he listening intently as his youngest team member imparted his theory.

“It’s Askari, Hotch. Or more accurately, someone wanting revenge for Askari’s death. It fits. The gunman I saw was dark haired and Middle Eastern. Askari tortured JJ. He blamed her. He told her he was going to take her child. The gunman was trying to kill Michael and Henry. And that gunman was killed because he screwed up, Hotch. He didn’t kill the boys, maybe they thought they killed me.”

“It’s a sound theory, Reid. You could be right. We’ll have Garcia run down all of Askari’s known associates and contacts and see if we can get a match.”

“He had contacts here in the U.S. as well as in Afghanistan and Iraq, according to JJ’s notes from the case, Hotch.”

“The gunman was stupid, Reid. So is whoever killed him and his driver. DCPD recovered shell casings at the scene where those two were killed. And they found a weapon and a cellphone in that Expedition. Thanks for calling, Reid. Now, please go get some sleep before your nurse calls me to give me hell.”

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Garcia swallowed the last of her morning coffee and called Hotch. 

“Farok Tor. He was the gunman. He was a colleague, if you want to call him that, of Askari’s in Afghanistan. After Askari was killed, Farok Tor and several others in their little circle of torture left Afghanistan for America to avenge him. One of those colleagues was the driver of the Expedition. Sayid Sabana. Also originally from Iraq, like Askari. Also known for numerous attacks on Americans serving overseas in that area. He was talented—if you want to use that word—in the art of making bombs. Also fluent in several languages. And also, and this is just too weird, Hotch, he went by the name Peter Lewis here in the US. I’m sending you each of their files.”

“All right, thanks Garcia. I’m on my way in to the office now, just had a meeting with Jack’s teacher. And before you ask, no, nothing’s wrong, it was just to apprise me of the available course selections for his middle school next semester.”

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Melissa awoke with a start. The eerie feeling of being in an unfamiliar bed passed almost immediately as the recollection of where she was and why set in. Rolling over, she brushed her hair out of her eyes and glanced over at Anna’s bed. Alarm flooded through her anew as she realised the child’s bed was empty and she jumped up immediately to investigate.

She fairly flew out of the room and came to an abrupt halt when she heard voices. Anna’s. And Spencer’s. Melissa heaved a sigh of relief and stifled a giggle as she peeked around the corner and saw the pair of them seated together on the sofa. Anna was curled up in Reid’s lap, holding a book that he was apparently reading to her. Melissa’s heart soared at the sight, and a wide smile spread across her face. Winnie the Pooh and friends were sharing an adventure with Anna and Spencer, and he was doing voices for each of the characters as he read. Recited, not read, Melissa realised after a moment. He obviously knew the book by heart and was doing gestures and making eye contact with Anna as he spoke. The child was entranced and in a moment, so was her mother. When the story ended, Anna looked up into Reid’s face and begged,

“Again! My Spencer, please again!” He laughed and patted her head and Melissa chose this moment to interrupt. 

“Maybe later, Anna,” she indicated the open newspaper on the coffee table in front of Reid and continued, rather more sternly than she meant to sound, “You interrupted his reading the paper, didn’t you?”

Anna looked down, lower lip quivering as she climbed off Reid’s lap and for a moment Spencer thought she might cry.

“Awww, it’s okay. Winnie and Eeyore are fun, too,” he soothed. “But your mom’s right. Later. We should all probably eat some breakfast. I could really use a coffee,” he said, and then added with a wry grin “Or ten.” 

He rose to press the call button for his nurse and inquired about food, which the woman said she’d have sent up immediately. 

Melissa offered to make coffee and set about doing so as Reid walked off to use the bathroom. She took mugs and spoons from the cupboard and retrieved milk from the refrigerator.

Anna approached her mother and tugged at her arm.

“I’m sorry Momma. Are you mad at me?”

Melissa stopped what she was doing, bent down to hug her and replied, “Of course not, Baby. You just can’t be bothering Spencer too much, he’s supposed to be in bed.”

“From the owies?”

“Yes honey.”

“I love My Spencer Mommy.”

Melissa’s voice dropped to a whisper. “I know you do, honey. So do I.”

Reid returned from the bathroom in time to hear the last of the exchange, but he gave no indication he’d overheard. Instead he asked rather loudly,

“Is Nurse Ratched here yet?”


	8. Chapter 8

Morgan hung up the phone on his desk and turned to face Lewis sitting across from him. 

“This. Is just nuts,” he said, shaking his head.

“What is it Derek?” Lewis asked.

“The cellphone they retrieved at the murder site. All the names of all the contacts in it read like a history of our cases from the last couple of years!”

“What?”

“There’s about twenty contacts listed in the phone. Numbers are mostly local. But their names are all the names of unsubs from our cases.” He rhymed off a few of the names, most of which were from prior to Lewis being on the team but she recognised one name immediately. 

“Ashley Fink!” Lewis repeated. “Savannah, Georgia. The girl with the thing for her sister’s fiancé.”

Garcia rolled her eyes and commented, “You’d think they’d at least be smart enough to use disposable cellphones.”

“And the last text this phone made was to that number. Meet at usual spot,” Morgan read. “That’s translated from the Arabic it was originally made in.”

As they pondered over this, Hotchner arrived. Greetings exchanged, they all convened to the conference room.

“If they’re so professional at the things they did back in Afghanistan, how are they utterly stupid enough to leave evidence laying around like they did in that car?” Morgan wanted to know.

“Carelessness. Complacency.” Hotch opined.

“We have a cellphone full of their aliases and contact numbers,” Lewis said. “It’s like they want us to catch them.”

“No, I think it’s more like a taunt,” offered up David Rossi over the speakerphone. He had taken the next shift at the hospital, vetting access to the secure suite. “They could find these names out easily enough just reading the media reports of our successfully solved cases.”

Hotchner agreed. “Garcia?” he asked.

“Yes, sir?”

“Can you find out from the numbers on that cell, where those phones are?”

“Just watch me, Sir,” she vowed, making her way back to her own office.

“Okay, so what do we know?” Hotchner asked. He, Morgan, Lewis and Rossi reviewed and discussed their case. Rossi’s cellphone sounded and he consulted the text before relaying the information to the others.

“Ballistics called a match on the Glock found in the Expedition. It’s the same gun used at the park shooting. And Farok Tor’s fingerprints are all over it.”

“Garcia’s running an all known associates list on Tor. We’ll cross match that with everything else we’ve established. Something will stick out.”

 

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“Part of me feels so useless, sitting here not helping the team,” JJ complained to Will. He handed her a mug of coffee and sat down next to her. Henry was watching a movie on the TV and Michael slept in the playpen next to them. “And part of me is just incredibly happy to be here, safe with all of you.”

“Mommy?” Henry interrupted.

“What is it honey?”

“Can Anna come over and play?”

“Oh, I’m sorry Henry. That’s just not possible today sweetie. But I promise you, we will make a play date as soon as we can.”

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Reid’s nurse arrived and he submitted to the usual examination, temperature and blood pressure readings and redoing of the bandage on his head. She ran him a bath, washed his hair and helped him dress in clean pajamas then adjusted the sling to hold his left arm in place. 

“Do you have a name? Something other than ‘nurse’ I can call you?” he asked her while she dabbed at his temple with a cotton swab.

“Well, yes, as a matter of fact, I do. My name is Louise.”

Reid broke out in a fit of laughter and tried his damnedest to pull himself together. He bit his lip and avoided making eye contact with her as she finished changing the bandage.

“I’ll be back later for the next readings,” she said as she finished changing the sheets on his bed and left the room.

He sat down on the sofa and picked up the files on their case. His cellphone buzzed and he pulled that out of his messenger bag to read the text from JJ.

Going stir here in PC. You?

I’m okay. Nurse Ratched looking after me. Anna and Melissa keeping me company.

Nurse Ratched? One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest?

Yes. Her name actually is Louise! Do you believe that?!

LOL. Hey Spence? Do you believe in love at first sight?

What? Where’d that come from?

NM. Henry calling. TTYL.

He set the phone down and resumed going through files. His cell buzzed again.

“Oh for pete sakes,” he said aloud as he picked up the cell again. It was from Garcia.

Sent updated file 2 Ur email. Found interesting info. Read and txt me back pls.

He laughed again. Reid didn’t own a computer. His email would go to his cellphone, same as the text messages and he found this amusing. As the message loaded, he decided to make himself some coffee and walked over to the table to do so.

Sitting back down on the sofa, he scrolled through the information Garcia had sent him. His mind raced, processing everything: unsub names, evidence left behind, Iraqi shooter killed, victimology. He drained the coffee and sighed. 

“I’m missing something.”


	9. Chapter 9

“It’s late, we’ve all had a long day. Why don’t you all go home for the evening? We’ll meet again in the morning,” Hotch told them.

He poked his head into Garcia’s office. “How’s it coming here, Garcia?”

“Just setting it up to run correlations for me overnight. It’ll match up all the associates from that list with their last known whereabouts. Their current ones if we know them. Cross match to the cellphones. And the unsub names they’re using. By morning, we should have the locations of all those phones and who’s using them and what takeout they last ordered.”

Hotch smiled. “See you in the morning then. Good night.”

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For the second night in a row, Spencer Reid sat bolt upright in his bed at 3 am. He fumbled for his glasses, put them on and then made his way over to the bathroom to get a glass of water. 

He’d just made an important deduction. But he wasn’t going to wake Hotch up again. This time it could wait, he decided, flipping on a lamp. He was too keyed up to go back to bed right away. The chessboard he’d put out on the desk caught his attention and he sat down by it. 

Melissa saw the light on in Spencer’s room and made her way over to him. He was engrossed in his chessboard, she noted, but was pretty sure he was also aware of her presence. 

He looked up and made eye contact, breaking into a smile. She reached out and touched his shoulder, 

“Are you all right?”

“Yeah, yeah I am. Thank you. I woke myself up because I was thinking about the case. Thought of something but I don’t want to wake Hotch up.”

“Okay,” she paused. “Can I make you some herbal tea? That might help you get back to sleep.”

“That would be really nice, thank you,” he said. She filled the kettle with water and plugged it in. The bouquet of flowers from Garcia sat on the table beside all the tea accoutrements. Spencer played idly with a couple of the blooms.

He remembered what he’d heard earlier and followed her.   
Melissa poured hot water into the mug to warm it up and set it down while she picked an herbal tea bag from the assortment of teas in the little basket on the table.

Spencer spoke softly, “Anna. Anna is quite a little doll.”

“Thank you. Yeah, she’s adorable. And she just loves you.”

He swallowed hard and steeled himself. It was time to come clean. “Yeah, I heard that earlier today.” 

Melissa emptied the mug and put the tea bag in it, adding fresh boiling water. She stiffened at his words. If he’d heard what Anna said—what else had he heard? Her answer came soon enough.

“I heard what you said too, Melissa. Is it—is it true?” His tone was almost imploring, she thought. Turning slowly to face him, she brought her eyes up to make eye contact and found he was holding a white rose in his hand which he now held out to her.

She took the rose and brought it up to her lips, then nodded and confessed, “Yes. Yes, it’s true, Spencer,” returning her gaze to the flower.

He reached out with his right hand (his only option since his left one was still strapped against his chest because of the injury) and touched her cheek, drawing her attention from the rose back up to his face. 

“I feel the same way,” he said very softly. Taking a step closer, he asked, “May I kiss you?”

“Spencer,” she breathed, turning her face up to his, their lips met in a gentle searching kiss. She brought her free hand up to cup his jaw and felt his right arm come up around her back drawing her close. His lips parted and Melissa’s tongue dared to dart between them, gently exploring his compliant mouth. After several minutes of ardent kissing, Melissa drew back, breathless. He sighed, exhaling the breath he’d been holding. She was the first to speak.

“That was nice. But we have to remember, you are actually a hospital patient here.”

“It was nice,” he agreed wholeheartedly. “And we are also in protective custody on a related case.”

“Very nice,” she said. “And I am a health care professional,” she enunciated.

“Very nice,” he repeated agreeably, ignoring what she’d said and bending down to kiss her again. 

She responded briefly then insisted, “You need to get back to bed.” Before he could say anything, because she saw he was contemplating a reply, “Alone this time,” then laughed as he pulled a mock face. “Or I will get you in trouble with Nurse Ratched.”

Melissa walked him back over to his bed and tucked his blankets in around him after he’d climbed in. “Think you’ll be able to fall asleep now?”

He nodded. 

“Relax,” she directed, as she massaged his head, carefully avoided the bandaged area at his temple. Within minutes, her technique had him falling fast asleep and she returned to her room. They had much to talk about, she anticipated.

His tea sat forgotten on the table.

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	10. Chapter 10

The team, except for Morgan sat around their conference table waiting for Hotchner. Garcia arrived with a file in her hands and told them she’d sent the information to their tablets, which they all immediately opened. 

Noting Morgan’s absence, Garcia pointed her pen at his seat. Lewis smiled and said “He’s home. Sleeping. He’s got the Reid Watch tonight.”

“Oh. Right,” she replied, “And I’m still waiting for a text reply from him,” she pouted.

“Says here after that Afghani woman Nadia and her daughter died, the husband went off the deep end. Askari had him killed because he considered him a liability,” Rossi said. He swiped through the tablet, reading further. 

Lewis read aloud from another page, “The authorities there arrested him several times for disturbances on the American base.”

Garcia took a seat at the round table, and spread open the file she had brought with her. “This is a list matching all those cell numbers with their alias unsub names to their actual identities. We already had Sayid Sabana as Peter Lewis here in the US. And Farok Tor used the name Donnie Mallick.” She shuddered in disgust remembering those cases. “The DCPD has already started rounding some of these people up. I sent them the geographic correlation of the phones first thing this morning. But there’s still a few gaps in the information.”

Hotchner arrived and Rossi updated him on the newest findings. The Unit Chief fielded a phone call and went to his office to check something.

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Anna sat at the table drawing and colouring a picture. Melissa emerged from the bathroom, fresh from a shower and wrapped in a towel. She padded over to view Anna’s artwork and ruffled her daughter’s hair.

“That’s very colourful, Anna. It’s looking beautiful.” She smiled when she noticed that Anna’s toy Winnie and Piglet were lined up in front of her, next to an empty cereal bowl. “Who ate your cereal, Winnie or Piglet?”

“Oh Mommy, *I* ate my cereal. Winnie and Piglet eat honey!” Anna told her, in a tone that indicated everyone would know this. Melissa laughed and busied herself getting dressed and drying her hair. 

She returned to the bathroom but couldn’t resist sneaking a peek around the corner first to see if Spencer was still sleeping. Confirming that suspicion, she twirled around and disappeared into the bathroom. Anna remained engrossed in her artwork.

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Hotch returned from his office to apprise the others.

“DCPD just spoke to someone who witnessed the double murder the other night. He was out walking his dog on the trails near that spot. Gave them a vehicle description. Heard two gunshots. And a woman’s voice.”

Rossi raised an eyebrow. 

 

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The doctor finished his examination of Reid and made his way over to see Melissa. She was tidying up after Anna’s breakfast. The child was still engrossed in her colouring.

“He seems to be recuperating nicely. As long as he continues to keep that left arm immobile, the muscles in his back should heal without complications. There’s no sign of infection, the draining’s clear. That’s good.”

Melissa nodded her understanding.

“I’ll be back in two days to give him another going over. Unless something arises before then, in which case please call me.”

“Absolutely,” she agreed. The doctor left and Melissa glanced over to see Anna still occupied with her art. She decided to see if Spencer was okay and tiptoed over to his room, peeking around the corner. 

Melissa was surprised to see that he looked distressed. She stepped back, then rapped lightly on the open door, affording him a warning of her impending arrival, and whispered, “Spencer? Are you all right?”

“Yeah,” he mumbled thickly and she saw him swipe at his eyes as she approached. Instantly, she was on alert.

“No. No you’re not! What’s wrong? Is there pain somewhere? Do I need to call the doctor or Nurse Ratched in here?”


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry I haven't updated in a couple days I've been sooooooo sick! grrrrr. Better now, hope you enjoy!

He waved her off with his good hand, “No. I’m good.”

“Yes, you are good, but what’s wrong? Something’s obviously wrong.” She sat up beside him on the bed and touched his arm. “Spencer?”

He was staring at the floor, avoiding making eye contact. She heard him sniffle and saw him swipe at his eyes with the back of his hand again. Melissa realised he was upset about something, not in pain and suddenly felt like she was intruding. Flooded with guilt, she apologised as she started to slide off his bed, stopping abruptly when she felt his grip on her arm, heard his sharp intake of breath.

“No, don’t. It’s—I’m okay,” he pulled her back down beside him and released her arm. “I’m sorry, it’s just, it’s a bad day today.” He sighed, “Gideon was murdered a year ago today.” He started to explain. “He was my mentor, the best profiler in the world. The one who got me into the BAU.”

“I’m sorry Spencer, I know how difficult that must be,” she patted his hand and glanced over to see he’d finally lifted his gaze from the floor. As their eyes made contact, she gave his hand a supportive squeeze. He leaned over, kissed her on the cheek and laid his head on her shoulder. She immediately wrapped her arms around him—carefully due to the sling—and they sat there together in an amicable silence for several minutes.

He started to say something, but they heard Anna calling out in a scared voice, “MOMMY? Where are you?”

“Over here, honey,” Melissa answered her. Anna came around the corner, carrying her picture. Spencer’s head still rested on Melissa’s shoulder and the perceptive child didn’t miss this, or the fact that her mother was currently hugging her Spencer.

Reid tilted his head up and addressed Anna, “What have you got there?”

“I made a picture,” she announced, and held it out to him. Melissa released Spencer from the hug and reached out for the picture but Anna placed it in Reid’s hand.

He spread the paper out on top of his bed and invited Anna to climb up on the bed so he could ask her about her work.

“It’s us. This is me,” she pointed to the smallest of the three figures she’d drawn, a self-portrait with dark curly hair and wearing a Mickey Mouse shirt. The one in the middle, Reid determined, was him—complete with arm in sling and bandage on head. He wondered if his hair was really as unruly as her interpretation indicated. “And this is My Spencer,” she said, confirming Reid’s conjecture. “See, he has the owie,” she pointed out the bandaged head.

“It looks just like me!” he told her, and was rewarded with her beaming smile. 

Melissa was depicted in flowing white and gold with a tiara in her hair. Anna explained, “And Mommy looks like a princess.”

“She certainly does,” Reid agreed. The three figures were holding hands and were surrounded by an assortment of brightly coloured flowers. There was another smaller figure in the bottom corner of the picture, closest to Anna.

“And this?” Reid asked. Melissa held her breath in silent apprehension.

“That’s a puppy. I want a puppy. A little white one like Snoopy.”

Melissa heaved a sigh of relief. Anna picked it up off the bed and then knelt next to Spencer and offered her artwork to him with a flourish.

“I made this for you,” she told him solemnly. For the second time in less than an hour, Reid was in tears, this time touched by Anna’s genuine love for him. She traced the wetness on his cheek. “Did my picture make you sad My Spencer?” 

He shook his head and reached out with his right hand to ruffle her hair. “Not at all, Anna.” He smiled brightly through the tears, “these are happy tears, and it makes me feel very special that you made this picture for me.” 

She wrapped her arms around his neck as best she could and said, “You are special, I love you My Spencer.”

“I love you too, Little Artist.” He hugged her against him with his one good arm and she said something that was muffled into his sleeve.

“Sorry honey, what was that?”

“Mommy too?”

“Yeah, I love your mommy too.”

And now Melissa’s eyes welled up with tears too, but she quickly blinked them away. Touching Anna’s back, she told her, “You need to get dressed, sweetie, you can’t just be in your pajamas all day.” 

“Okay, Mommy,” she scurried off to do as she was told.

Melissa turned to Spencer, “Are you okay?”

He nodded.

She reached out with a hand and touched his shoulder. He covered her hand with his, curling his fingers around her hand and bringing it to his lips to kiss it. She bent down and kissed the top of his head then spoke.

“I’m making coffee. Want some?”

“You are a goddess,” he exclaimed, watching her walk back to the coffeemaker. He pulled out his cellphone and started texting. Finding it frustrating to do with one hand, he cleared the text and just called Garcia to talk to her instead.

Reid’s nurse Louise used her access card and entered the room, carrying an armload of towels. She walked through the living area over to bathroom and dropped off the towels then turned to address him after he concluded his cellphone call.

“Did your doctor say anything to you about physiotherapy, Spencer?”

He shook his head.

“Well. That’s funny,” she mused.

“What is?”

“I just had a call from a physiotherapist’s office, asking me to set up a consultation appointment for you.”

“He didn’t say anything to me about needing physio. What did you tell them?”

“I didn’t tell her anything. I told her that it would have to go through your doctor.”

Melissa, who had been standing by the door with two mugs of coffee, gasped. Spencer bit his lip and a frown crossed his face.

Louise looked from one to the other, not understanding.

“You just confirmed that Spencer’s a patient here to someone outside the security clearance detail.”

Her hands flew to her face. “Oh my goodness! I’m so sorry, I didn’t even think of that!” She fretted and started to cry, apologising profusely and repeatedly before collecting herself and telling them she’d call security right away and inform them of her mistake. “If you want another nurse, someone who’s not such an idiot, I will let the doctor know and have them arrange that—“

Reid patted her arm. “Nah, it’s okay. Even if they know I’m here, they still can’t access me. Derek Morgan just won’t let that happen. Just be more careful.”

Melissa wasn’t as inclined to be forgiving, but she let it pass without further comment. She took Spencer’s hand and led him to the sofa where the two sat with their coffees.

“Wow, a week ago I wouldn’t have thought twice about what just happened with Louise and the physiotherapist. Like her, it would just never have occurred to me. It’s funny how hanging around with law enforcement enhances one’s suspicious nature about everything.”

“A week ago, I would never have anticipated a woman would literally fall for me. Or that I’d find love. Ever again.”

He set his coffee mug down and turned to face her. Melissa’s mug followed suit. She cupped his face tenderly in her hands and planted a row of kisses along his jaw. He responded initially, moving his head so their lips met. For several minutes, amid the whispered endearments and murmured admissions of love, the world ceased to exist beyond them. And then Spencer drew back, taking her hand in his and drawing it away from his face. He caught his breath and searched for words,

“This can’t happen right now. It’s completely inappropriate. But I want this, I want us.” He chewed his lower lip, pausing when he saw the confusion in her eyes. “There’s an active case here. It’s just not done. I can’t be involved personally with a victim or a witness while the case is still ongoing.”

She fought back the tears threatening to fill her eyes and took a deep breath, understanding what he was saying and why. Spencer continued,

“Can we just freeze this moment in time, and come back to it once this case is done?”


	12. Chapter 12

She nodded and let the tears fall. Their foreheads touched for a moment then Spencer pulled back and softly kissed hers.

Anna emerged from the bedroom just as Spencer ended the kiss to Melissa’s forehead. She bounded over to them and twirled to show off how she’d dressed herself in a pink t-shirt and purple skirt. 

“I tied my own shoes. But it took me forever!” she said, thrusting out one Dora-running-shoe-covered-foot for Melissa and Spencer to see. Both adults fussed over her and Spencer stood up.

“That reminds me! I’ll be right back,” he said as he strode over to his bed, retrieved the bag Garcia had brought him and returned to the ladies immediately. He held the bag out to Anna.

“This is for you, Anna.”

The little girl opened the bad and squealed in delight as she unpacked a new Dora the Explorer sweater. It wasn’t exactly the same as the one that had been ruined in the park shooting but it was her instant favourite regardless. She pulled it on over the t-shirt and danced around ecstatically, thanking Spencer over and over again for the sweater.

“I really need to call Hotch and tell him what I figured out,” Spencer told them, “it’s like I’m working, Anna,” he explained to her when she’d stopped mid dance and her eyes widened in alarm.

“We’ll go back to our part of the suite. Anna, you need to work on your letters and printing for a while anyway,” her mother ushered her towards the room. She looked back over her shoulder as Spencer watched them leave. His eyes met hers and she told Anna, “Get to work sweetie, I’ll be right there.”

Melissa took a few steps back in Spencer’s direction and reached for his hand.

“As soon as this case is over—“ she nuzzled his neck. He nodded in agreement, kissed her hair and reluctantly pushed himself away from her.

“This is where we’ll pick up,” dropping her hand and heaving a sigh. He turned and pulled out his cellphone, calling up Hotch’s number.

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“Excellent work, Reid. Thank you. The others are here, we’ll work with your theory. Morgan told me about what happened with the nurse this morning. Are you sure everything’s okay?”

He listened as Reid spoke and then replied, “And I also got an update from your doctor. You’re not resting enough according to him. As much as we appreciate your input in the case, your health comes first, Reid. Please try to do what you’re told,” Hotch said, almost breaking into a smile as he realised he was probably asking the impossible. Reid was nothing if not dedicated to whatever he was currently working on.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I screwed up the formatting for chapter 12, had to delete and repost. To make it up to you dear readers, I'm posting chapter 13 today too. argh! sorry about that

Call concluded, Hotch rejoined Garcia, Rossi and Lewis at the round table. 

“JJ’s on her way to the hospital to relieve Morgan?” Lewis asked. Garcia nodded.

“She was really glad you decided that playing sentry for Reid was still within Protective Custody parameters, Sensai. She was going nuts not being able to help with the case.”

Hotch explained, “That was the story I fed them. We’re actually trying to draw out the unsub.”

“Um, Sir? I need to go to the hospital later too, I picked up a few things Reid needs.” 

“Of course, Garcia, when we’re done here, you go,” he began. “I spoke to him. Reid thinks that cellphone was intentionally left behind by the woman who murdered the two park killers.”

“Oh that makes sense!” Tara nodded. She wants us to know she killed those two men. But why?”

“Because they screwed up,” Rossi intoned. “They were supposed to kill JJ’s husband and children. And they didn’t.”

“So, the boss is a she?”

“We need to figure out her connection to Askari. That might tell us why she’s after JJ.”

“A lover?” Lewis guessed.

Both Hotch and Rossi shook their heads. “No, I don’t think so. Someone close who lost—“ Rossi mused.

“Children,” Hotch deduced. “Garcia, run your list of known associates of Askari again. This time, narrow it down to those with family members killed.”

She scurried to her office. Fingers flew over the keyboard as Garcia did as she was bid. 

 

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“Okay, thanks, Derek. I’ll keep a look out for that as well. See ya!” JJ acknowledged as Morgan waved and left. He’d given her the cellphone that connected them to the secure room and she propped that up on the desk they were using. The desk sat behind a small divider with a counter top on which sat a house phone and a small candy filled dish. She pulled out her own cellphone and tablet, setting up the latter on the desk to receive files from Garcia as required. This done, she clicked on her cellphone and sent a text.

Can you trace phone call about physiotherapist to originating phone?

Sure if u can provide me w/ recipient’s info.

Standby for that…

JJ called Hotch and asked him to relay the number of Reid’s nurse’s phone to Garcia. She opened the desk drawer and found a cellphone. She turned it on, and realised it looked familiar. Tapping another message into her own phone, JJ added,

And let Morgan know he left his cellphone here.

 

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“Mommy, can we have pizza for lunch today?” Anna set down the pencil she’d been using to copy letters and sighed. “I’m hungry.”

Melissa looked up from the novel she’d been reading.

“Oh my gosh, honey, I’m sorry, I had no idea it was already lunch time,” she exclaimed, glancing at her watch, “Way past lunch time!” 

Melissa picked up the phone and called, wondering which of Reid’s teammates would be on the other end. 

“Hey, Spence, what’s up?” JJ answered.

“Hi JJ. It’s Melissa, not Spence. He’s supposed to be sleeping. Although I’m not sure if he is at the moment.”

“Everything all right?” JJ furrowed her brow. Melissa sounded a little sad and JJ hoped it didn’t mean things weren’t going well with Reid.

“Yeah, it’s fine. We had an emotional morning. Apparently, today is the anniversary of—“

“Oh my God, Gideon’s death,” JJ interrupted, drawing a sharp breath. “Yeah, Spence would take that hard. He’s okay? Everything all right between you?”

Melissa reflected for a moment and replied quietly, “He’s okay, yes. And it will be once this case is over. Anyway,” she shook off the melancholy and tried to be a little brighter, “Anna is desperate for pizza. Is there any way we could order one and have—“

“I am all over that for you, Melissa. What does Anna want on her pizza?”

#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM

Louise entered quietly, making her way over to the Martins’ section of the suite. She set the pizza down on the coffee table as Anna and Melissa came out of the bathroom.

“Pizza!” Anna squealed, breaking into a run. Louise smiled and opened the bag she was carrying for Anna to look inside. 

“See what else I brought you?” 

“Oh! Mommy, look! Chocolate milk!”

‘I hope that’s all right, Mrs. Martin. I thought the poor little thing has had nothing but healthy hospital meals for the last few days. If we were going to have pizza today, I thought we deserved chocolate milk or soda pop too. But I wasn’t sure what your stand on soda pop was.”

Melissa giggled and said, “Anna’s not used to soda at all, but as you can see, the chocolate milk is very welcome. And it’s Miss Martin, actually, but please just call me Melissa.”

Louise nodded and walked over to check on Spencer. He was sound asleep in his bed, she noted. She took his temperature without disturbing him and noted on his chart that he was asleep and therefore the blood pressure reading and the bandage change were going to wait. He was lying on his back, left arm secured up against his chest and apparently comfortable. 

She made her way back to the ladies and told them she’d be back in a few hours, politely declining Anna’s spontaneous invitation to eat pizza with them.

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	14. Chapter 14

“No, I’m pretty sure there is no one here by that name,” JJ played it cool, tapping a few keys into the laptop and looking up meet the delivery person’s gaze. An enormous bouquet of flowers in a heavy crystal vase was perched on the counter; the woman in a florist’s outfit was holding them with one hand and fishing through pockets for something. JJ stood up and pressed a few keys on the laptop, hit send and then, without ever taking her eyes off the florist, tapped a key on the secure phone without being detected.

JJ moved to get out her gun. The florist found what she was searching for and brought out a weapon, pointed it at JJ and in heavily accented English demanded,

“You will take me upstairs to the LaMontagne room now!”

JJ started to unholster her own weapon but the florist pushed the bouquet into her, knocking her over and pointed her weapon at the profiler.

“Get up. And keep your hands where I can see them!”

Jareau did as she was told. Standing up slowly, she raised her hands above her head. The florist took aim and repeated her earlier demand,

“Take me to the LaMontagnes!”

“I can’t! There’s nobody here with that name!”

JJ flinched as she heard the gun cock. The florist growled at her and said something in a language JJ didn’t understand, her finger itching on the trigger. She grabbed at JJ’s shirt, hauled her forward and jabbed her gun into JJ’s back.

“I know they are all up there with Spencer Reid! Take me now!” 

“No!”

The florist pointed her gun at JJ’s head. A shot rang out.

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The physiotherapist phone call was made from the same number that turned up in the park shooter’s car. The recipient’s name is Ashley Fink.

Text sent, Garcia packed up her things and headed out to fulfill the errands Reid had requested of her earlier.

#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM

Hospital Security called and alerted the DCPD plainclothes officers that were patrolling the premises to let them know the Secure Room monitor had sounded an alarm. Four of them dispatched to the monitoring desk. 

As they moved quickly down the corridor leading to the exclusive access elevator, they heard a gunshot. Rounding a corner, they saw a bloodied woman lying on the floor. Standing over her, assessing the damage was SSA Derek Morgan. 

JJ thanked Derek yet again for his fortuitous timing. He acknowledged her then spoke into his wire to the DCPD supervisory officer, 

“She’s dead, get someone down here,” just as the four plainclothes arrived.

JJ gave him the cellphone he’d left behind and he called Hotch immediately. “I got back here to pick up my phone, and find JJ about to be shot in the back of the head by a florist. A phony florist.”

Using a tissue, JJ handed him the deceased woman’s cellphone. He tried turning it on and swore under his breath. 

“Have to get BabyGirl to crack this one for us,” he said, then his voice softened, “JJ, are you okay?” He touched her arm.

She nodded. “Derek, she kept demanding I take her to the LaMontagnes’ room. And she didn’t recognise me as JJ. Or at least, she didn’t let on she did!”

Morgan took the dead woman’s gun and laid it and her cellphone on the desktop. He told the police what had happened leading up to the woman being shot by him. One of the plainclothes told them that Forensics was on the way. Morgan indicated the gun and told them he wanted it tested for ballistics and cross-matched to the slugs taken from the two dead men involved in the park shooting. He wanted them to check the floral bouquet as well.

“Our tech analyst needs to go through the phone. I’ll have it sent over when she’s pulled the information she needs,” Morgan promised. Taking care not to smudge prints, he picked the phone up using a pair of evidence bags provided by one of the plainclothes. 

As they spoke, the Forensics team arrived.

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	15. Chapter 15

Garcia parked her car and gathered all her purchases then headed into the hospital. She saw the DCPD Forensics van as well as several DCPD cruisers leaving.

When she arrived at the exclusive elevator access area, she found JJ and Derek. 

“I expected to find you here JJ, it’s your watch, but what are you doing here Derek?”

“We had an incident,” he began and when he saw her anxiety showing on her face, he softened his tone before continuing, “Don’t worry, nobody’s hurt, Mama. Reid’s okay, he doesn’t even know about it yet.”

He handed her the bagged cellphone. “I need you to go back to the office and go through this thing. Carefully, cause it’s evidence, BabyGirl. We think it’s the ringleader’s.”

“I’ll wear gloves,” she promised, stowing the phone in her oversized bag. “But I’m here to see Reid,” she stated.

“I’m afraid that’s not possible right now,” JJ told her. Garcia looked from one to the other,

“Why not?”

“His nurse isn’t allowing visitors right now,” Morgan answered her. “I just went up to see him and she said he was sleeping and we aren’t to disturb him.”

Garcia made a face. JJ told her, “She’s a regular Nurse Ratched. But she really does have his best interest at heart.”

“But he asked me to bring him,” she stalled, “things,” Garcia said, indicating two of the bags in her hands.

“I’ll make sure he gets them, Pen.” JJ reached for the bags. “His nurse checks in with us pretty regularly.”

 

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“This was dropped off for you earlier, but you were sleeping and I wasn’t going to let anyone wake you up,” Louise told Reid as she handed him the first of the two bags Garcia had brought for him. He was in his pajamas, sitting on the sofa eating breakfast and reading through the newspaper. Reid took the bag from her and pulled a picture frame and display stand from it. 

“Oh this is perfect,” he commented as he padded over to his bed and retrieved the picture Anna had made for him from the side table. He fit the picture into the frame and then walked back to the coffee table and set the framed art upon it.

Anna, still in her pajamas, bounded in from the other room, looking for breakfast and beamed happily when she saw Spencer sitting on the sofa. She climbed up next to him.

Louise approached, thermometer in hand. Reid made a production of whining and submitting for Anna’s benefit and the little girl laughed as he pretended the blood pressure cuff hurt. Chart completed, Louise set about removing the bandage on his temple. She dabbed at it with the disinfectant and then gave Reid a piece of good news,

“I don’t think this needs to be covered anymore. It’s clean and healing nicely. I’ll be back later. You behave.”

“Yes ma’am!” He poured a bowlful of Cheerios for Anna, and splashed some milk on them. Handing her a spoon, he set the bowl in front of her and invited her to eat.

They finished their breakfast and then Reid showed her the display stand. She beamed with pride when she saw it and ran excitedly to get her mother to come see it.

“Good morning,” he welcomed her. “Coffee? Cereal?”

“You made coffee?” Melissa asked.

“No. I was hoping you would,” he confessed.

She laughed.

“Please,” he wheedled.

“Of course,” she replied and made her way to the coffeemaker. Once she had that going, she took Anna’s hand and asked her what she wanted to show her. Anna led her to the table where Spencer had set up the displayed picture and Melissa smiled widely, partly due to parental pride and partly to acknowledge Reid’s thoughtfulness.

“It looks wonderful, Anna. Spencer, that’s very sweet of you.”

“It’s going to be a difficult decision trying to figure out whether I want to have this at home or on my desk at work,” he told them.

“I will make you another picture!” Anna said excitedly and immediately raced into their room to get the paper and crayons she’d need.

Melissa brought the coffee and sat down beside Spencer on the sofa.

“Did you get a good sleep last night? It was such a rough morning for you yesterday.”

“I did. Slept from before lunch right through dinner. Garcia came to visit me yesterday evening and I slept through that too.”

She put her hand on top of his and gave it a short squeeze. They drank their coffees in companionable silence, Spencer reading the newspaper, Melissa her novel.

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	16. Chapter 16

“It appears The Kid was right, Aaron,” Rossi said. “The woman was the boss. Mission oriented. And she’s disorganized, sloppy and not very good at being bad.” He was sitting in Hotchner’s office, and the two men were piecing together all the information that had been gathered.

“DCPD has rounded up 13 of the people in that initial contact list we had, Dave. Every one of them is connected either directly or secondarily to Askari. They found a computer at one location. Everything on it was in Arabic, the Linguistics team is on that.”

Rossi flipped through a report. “Ballistics matched the bullets in those two thugs to the gun Morgan took off that bitch last night.”

There was a knock on Hotchner’s open door and Garcia peeked in, holding a file in her hands.

“Sir?”

“What do you have Garcia?”

“That woman’s cellphone? It’s the one the call about the physiotherapist was made from. It also called the hospital on four other occasions in the last three days.”

“Fishing for information about Reid.”

“Most of the text messages are in Arabic, I’m running them all through the translator now, but I did see something I thought was weird, Sir.”

She paused, waiting as Hotch’s text alert tone went off. He looked down at it, then up at Garcia.

“Which was what, Garcia?”

“She got a text from ‘Peter Lewis’ that had a picture of Reid in it. But, it said ‘Will LaMontagne’ under it.”

“Reid was right,” Rossi said. “He thought from the beginning that they mistook him for Will. So did I. What we didn’t think was that they’d be stupid enough to not check these things more thoroughly. Rank amateurs.”

“That makes them dangerous and unpredictable.”

“True. But their mistakes make them easier to catch. Like fish in a barrel.”

Hotch’s phone rang and he saw who it was from and waved Rossi and Garcia away to take it in private.

 

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Back at her desk, Garcia read the results of one of her searches on a monitor. She condensed the information into smaller files then sent it all to the profilers’ tablets, group texting to let them know it was on the way. And because he had no tablet, she sent an even more condensed version of the information in an email to Reid and muttered aloud,

“I don’t care what he says, I’m going to get him a tablet too. I will drag him into the twenty-first century if it means kicking and screaming.”

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His cellphone sounded the text alert and Reid dug through the pocket of his housecoat to attend to it. Beside him, Melissa didn’t even stir, so engrossed in her Dr. Who book she didn’t notice his movement.

“Wait! What?” his eyes widened as his mind absorbed what the text said and he immediately dialed a number. This caught her attention and Melissa glanced up briefly.

“Sorry,” he apologised, rising to take his call further away so as not to disturb her.

“Wait a minute,” Garcia said, “I’ll patch in everybody else too.”

Morgan, Rossi and Lewis sat at the conference table and turned on the speakerphone. JJ, still at the hospital, joined them from her own cellphone and Garcia used her office intercom to attend.

“You want to tell me when you were going to let me know about the florist with the death wish for me?” Reid sounded just a little angry.

“PrettyBoy! How are ya doin’?” Morgan tried to sideswipe the conversation, but Reid was having none of it. Hotch came into the room just as the conversation transpired.

“She could have killed me. Or *worse*, Melissa or Anna!”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, PrettyBoy, there’s no way we would’ve let that happen!”

“I just read your incident reports from last night!”

“Reid, relax, you really were never in any danger!” Morgan started to explain. “After all the calls and the physiotherapist ploy, we knew she was gonna try again. She profiled as mission oriented, the mission wasn’t complete.”

“It didn’t even get that far, but I would have taken her up the decoy elevator,” JJ added. Reid softened a little. “And I dare anyone in this world to try and get past Nurse Ratched.”

Hotch looked around the table and addressed the entire group.

“They’ve all been caught. There were 19 in total, including the woman. One of the men was eager to cooperate and gave up all his co-conspirators.”

Rossi muttered, ”Jagoff.” He shook his head in disgust. “With friends like that.”

“Owen McGregor, real name Aarif Baher, he’s the brains behind this operation.”

“If you wanna call it brains, he’s obviously no Spencer Reid,” Rossi interrupted.

Hotch raised an eyebrow and continued reading, “Baher worked from Islamabad, Pakistan although he’s actually an Afghan national. He assigned them all code names, names of our unsubs he apparently took from various media sites that reported on our cases.” Hotch paused, deep in thought for a moment, then set the report down for a moment to say, “That really doesn’t explain how he’d be stupid enough to mistake Reid for Will LaMontagne.”

Morgan looked up from the police incident report. “But if they followed Reid from JJ’s house, and he had that hoodie on, they may just have assumed he was Will.”

“Fair enough, but why is their Intel picture wrong?”

“Because Aarif Baher is a moron,” Rossi stated.

Garcia spoke up, “I have a name, my peeps. Mursal Nawabi, also known to her cohorts as Ashley Fink.” She paused and continued “Oh. My. Oh. Get this. She is the sister of a man Askari had killed. The husband of the woman Nadia. The woman JJ was trying to help!”

Hotch continued, “Forensics came back on the gun and the flowers. Good call on that, Morgan, by the way. The gun is a match for the one that killed the park shooter and his driver. And enclosed with the flowers was a little packet that’s supposed to contain a floral preservative but in this case the crystals tested positive for cyanide. Which of course, would never have made it to Reid’s room anyway.”

“Hey, Hotch?” JJ asked, “If we have them all, does that mean the case is done? That protective custody’s over for me and my family?”

“I’ll call off the detail at your home and at the safe house and have them take Will and the boys home. Get one of the units at the hospital to take you home JJ, but give us about two hours to finalise things first. And Reid, you’re not going anywhere until I talk to your doctor.”

#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM


	17. Chapter 17

“We’ll be out of protective custody soon,” Spencer announced to Melissa as he clicked his phone shut and rejoined her in the living area. 

Louise entered the room and immediately took charge of Reid. He made a face behind her back as she shooed him over to his bed and drew the privacy curtain around them. Melissa laughed and went to check on Anna.

He flexed his left arm once Louise had removed the sling, swinging it back and forth slightly. 

“Not too much, Spencer, you’re still healing. Can you move it up and down carefully?” He winced as he did so, and Louise noted that and asked him to do several other movements, noting his progress for each. 

“Still won’t take the pain medication either?” He shook his head. “Sleeping all right?” He nodded. “Eating?” Another nod. She marked it all on his chart and asked if he wanted a bath.

“Do you think maybe I could just take my own shower?” he asked her. She considered this for a moment, and said, “Well the showering part you could probably handle, but can you undress and dress yourself?”

He fumbled one-handedly over the buttons of his pajama top and swore over the resulting failure.

“Baby steps,” Louise said. “How about I help you undress, you take your own shower and then I’ll help you dry off and get dressed after?”

Melissa had retaken her spot on the sofa and was reading her Dr. Who novel again. As Louise and Spencer made their way to the bathroom, Louise chuckled as she teased him,

“Maybe she would help you?”

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“There you go, Boss,” Garcia dropped a file on the table in front of Hotchner.

“What’s this?” he asked even as he flipped it open and started to read through it.

Rossi and Morgan waited for elaboration; Garcia gave it to them,

“It’s the transcript, into English, of the relevant files taken from,” she made quotation marks “Owen McGregor’s computer. Owen McGregor being the name used by one Abdul Qahar Rashid, one of Mursal Nawabi’s henchmen.”

Hotch looked up from the papers. “They keep referring to Agent Will LaMontagne here, but the dossier photos are all of Reid. They really thought Reid was Will. Incredibly stupid,” he shook his head, “Such a glaring error.”

“Mistaken identity,” Rossi intoned. 

“But this pretty much clears it, doesn’t it Hotch?” Morgan opined. 

“It verifies all the group members who’ve been apprehended. Or have been killed. According to Rashid’s writing, Nawabi wanted to exact revenge for her brother’s family’s death by killing the family of the one she felt was responsible. JJ.”

“So the target was never Reid. They just thought he was Will all along.” 

Garcia shook her head, partly in relief, partly in disgust, and headed back to her desk, muttering about innocent lives being risked.

#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM

He emerged from the bathroom dressed in jeans and a sweater, left arm back in its sling and clicking shut his cellphone with his right hand. Melissa greeted him with a kiss and a mug of coffee. Louise smiled knowingly and left.

“Where’s Anna?” Spencer asked, having realised he hadn’t seen the child for some time.

Melissa waved towards their room. “She’s working in secret, she said. Kicked me out too.” They both laughed.

They walked over to the sofa and sat down together. 

“You said it would be over soon?” she began.

He nodded, waving his cellphone and stowing it in a pocket, “Garcia just confirmed they have them all, and there’s evidence clearly indicating they thought I was Will. JJ’s husband, and they were after JJ and her family all along.”

“So Protective Custody is over?”


	18. Chapter 18

He nodded. “We’ll all be back to our regular normal lives soon.” Melissa greeted this news with mixed feelings. She was looking forward to fresh air, outside, even work. But she was going to miss ‘living’ with Spencer. She was still considering this when Spencer spoke again.

“It also means the case is done, Melissa. It’s not an active case anymore, the involvement restriction protocol is done.” She took her time processing this information and Spencer decided to put it another way,

“I’m pressing the resume button, freeze frame is over.” If she needed more confirmation of what he was referring to, he gave it to her. Setting his half full coffee mug down on the table, he drew her close with his right arm and, fighting the pain that ensued, lifted his left hand up from its sling to cup her face and lowered his lips to hers. 

Her arms reached up around his neck and held him close, inwardly vowing never to let him go. They kissed for a long time, lips parting, tongues exploring until both were breathless. When they finally pulled apart, Melissa pushed his left hand back into place, adjusting the sling to keep his arm immobile cautioning him to keep it still. Kissing the almost healed spot on his temple, she asked

“Do you believe in love at first sight, Spencer?”

“I never used to. I mean, it’s not logical. It’s highly unscientific. I didn’t think it was actually possible,” he smiled down at her and continued, “Then you literally fell at my feet and proved me wrong.”

He kissed her thoroughly again sparking a passionate response from her which was interrupted by a sudden ‘Oh!’ coming from the direction of the girls’ room.

“Mommy, are you and My Spencer making kissy face?” Anna came towards them.

The adults, both embarrassed and amused, broke apart. Melissa bent down to Anna’s level and was preparing to explain, when Anna continued, in a voice that sounded almost alarmed, “Don’t stop! Please don’t stop.”

Anna’s eyes welled up with tears, which Melissa wiped away with her fingers immediately. Spencer knelt down to their level, kissed Anna on the forehead and then kissed Melissa again, much to the child’s delight.

After a moment, Spencer drew back and asked Anna, “Is that okay? Can I make kissy face with your mommy whenever we want?”

Her face lit up and she threw her little arms around Reid, belatedly remembering about his hurt arm and immediately shrank back. 

“Sorry! Sorry My Spencer,” she patted his arm. “Can we stay here for always?”

Melissa broke in, “No honey. Remember, this is really a hospital. Spencer is hurt, he’s a patient here. We’re just,” she paused for an appropriate word. “Helping.” Reid nodded his approval of this rather enthusiastically.

“They’re actually going to let you and your mommy go home later today.”

At this, Anna started to cry. Reid was taken aback. “Sorry, oh my God, I’m sorry. What have I done?”

Melissa touched his arm and whispered, “It’s okay,” to him then took Anna into her arms. “Sweetie, it’s okay, we’re going to go home to your toys and books and your own bed.”

“I want My Spencer.” Anna stated in no uncertain terms, crossing her arms angrily. Reid stood up, wanting to afford Melissa a bit of privacy to deal with Anna’s upset.

“Honey, he’s our friend and we will see him lots, I promise,” she hoped this would be the case even as she said it. 

“I like when he reads me a story.” She held her ground.

“I’m sure he would love to read you more stories, Anna.”

“I want him to make kissy face with you.” 

Melissa couldn’t disagree with that sentiment. “I’d like that too.” Anna’s arms came down and she hugged her mother for a moment, then she ran over to Reid who was sitting on his bed talking on his phone.

“Anna, don’t be inter—“ Melissa admonished, too late as Anna had already run to Spencer.

“Really?” he was saying in a disappointed tone of voice. “For how much longer?”

Melissa stalked over and took Anna by the arm, pulling her away from Spencer and scolding her in a whisper, “Honey, he’s on the phone, we can’t be rude!”

They went back into their room and Anna took out a fresh piece of paper and started another picture. Melissa picked up her Dr. Who novel and continued reading.

#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM#CM


	19. Chapter 19

They unlocked their front door and Henry burst in between Will and JJ eager to get back to his room and his toys. His parents exchanged a glance and a laugh and sighed with relief and happiness to be back in their own home.

JJ told Will she was going to put Michael down in his crib and would be right in to Henry’s room to read with him. 

Ten minutes later, as JJ entered Henry’s room she broke into a wide smile. Father and eldest son lay sleeping cuddled together on the child’s bed.

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“Melissa?” Reid called out, wondering where they’d gone although logically he knew they would be in their room since they weren’t in his and he was sure they would not have left without saying goodbye. If they’d even been released from Protective yet, he mused.

Hearing him call, Melissa came out of their room, holding her book in one hand. She reached for Spencer’s right hand with her free hand.

“I just spoke to Hotch. And my doctor.”

“And?”

“Hotch will be by later today to pick you and Anna up and take you home.”

“Oh. Okay, thank you.”

“And me. I’m not so lucky. Doctor is keeping me here for at least a couple more days,” he sighed, clearly unhappy with the prospect.

“I’ll visit,” she promised, squeezing his hand. “And save you from Nurse Ratched.”

That elicited a smile and he leaned over and kissed her.

“Actually, Anna has missed enough school. I will take her to school in the morning and come right here afterwards if you like,” she offered. The one-armed hug he gave her affirmed this, and she continued, “Unless I’m working. I’ll call for my schedule.”

He released her from the hug and waited for her to make the call. While she was on the phone, Spencer made his way to their room and checked in on Anna. She was busy drawing another picture and bending down to her level, he asked her to tell him about it.

“This is mommy and this is you,” she pointed out two of the characters. The pictured Spencer was wearing the same jeans and sweater as the actual Spencer was and sported the same sling on his left arm. Both Spencers had the same tousled messy hair, he noted then said wryly, “I really need to get a haircut.”

“NO!” Anna protested, patting the unruly mess atop his head. “I like this! And so does Mommy.”

‘Note to self,’ he thought, ‘do not change the hair.’

Even though he was pretty sure what the answer was going to be, he asked her what they were doing.

“You’re making kissy face of course,” she said, as though it was the most obvious thing ever. “Are you gonna come to my house and read to me, My Spencer?”

“I sure will, once they let me out of here, Anna,” he promised.

Melissa came to the door at that moment and watched them.

“Every night?” Anna prodded.

“Every night that I’m able, Anna. I have work too, remember. And your mother may have other ideas.”

Melissa came into the room and told Anna her artwork was looking beautiful but the adults had some adult things to talk about and would leave her to colour in peace. She led Spencer back out to the living area and sat him down on the sofa next to her.

She put the Dr. Who book on the table. Then she took his hand in hers and spoke,

“As it turns out, my work thought I’d be gone for at least another week, so I’m not going back just yet. Nurse Ratched will have some competition for your time and attention.”

“I am totally agreeable with that scenario,” he smiled at her.

“I’m finished the book. Thanks for suggesting it, I really loved it.” 

He smiled at that and murmured, “Good, good. Glad you enjoyed it.”

She lifted their joined hands briefly to emphasise them for a moment, then continued:

“And I know how much you like a good quote, here’s one from this book: 'Hold hands. That’s what you’re meant to do. Keep doing that and don’t let go. That’s the secret.'”

 

-fin-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those interested, I have already started the sequel to 'Mistaken Identity', thus far called 'My Spencer'. A huge thank you to all who sent comments and kudos, it's much appreciated.


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